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What’s the Logic Behind the Boston Celtics’ Fire Sale?
The Celtics Have Traded Porzingis and Holiday, and Could Move Brown and White Before the Deadline
A New Chapter
Life comes at you fast. One moment, the Boston Celtics were considered to have the best roster, albeit an expensive one, in the NBA, which helped them win the NBA Finals in 2024 and put them in a prime position to repeat in 2025.
Then, after some shocking blows led to the Knicks and a major Achilles injury to star Jayson Tatum, it looks like the team’s championship chances are already compromised for the 2025-26 season, given Tatum’s long recovery time.
Top dawgs 😤 pic.twitter.com/4Vh1BHctF4
— Boston Celtics (@celtics) June 21, 2025
Then the NBA news this week further dismantled that championship roster in a series of moves that look like a fire sale:
- Guard Jrue Holiday was traded to Portland for Anfernee Simons and two second-round picks.
- Center Kristaps Porzingis was part of a three-team trade that will send him to Atlanta and bring Georges Niang to Boston.
Celtics executive Brad Stevens may not be done either, as there are NBA rumors that Jaylen Brown (2024 NBA Finals MVP) and Derrick White could also be on the way out in Boston.
It’s a stunning transformation, but if you’ve kept up with the financial side of the NBA, you knew there wouldn’t be a lot of Boston Celtics games where Tatum, Brown, Holiday, Porzingis, and White were going to be playing together. This roster was always limited in time.
Forever #Celtics. Porzingis and Holiday should never have to buy a drink in Boston again. pic.twitter.com/xsbJzxipEx
— Dave Cavell (@DavidFCavell) June 25, 2025
The Salary Cap Impact
None of these moves is motivated by performance. It’s all about relieving the financial burden, as the Celtics had two record-setting supermax contracts in place for Tatum and Brown worth over $600 million combined. That alone makes it tough to build around.
This is why a team like the Lakers, even with their new billionaire owner Mark Walter, will have a hard time simply buying the best roster. In today’s NBA, you have a salary cap system with multiple tiers:
- All teams have to operate under a salary cap with a limit of roughly $155 million for the 2025-26 season.
- If they go above that, they have to pay a luxury tax, which is a tax on the amount they went over the limit.
- If they spend over $195 million, that’s the first apron limit, which imposes further restrictions.
- If they spend over $207.8 million, that’s the second apron limit, which imposes the strictest penalties, including limitations on trades, contract structure, and could even lead to frozen draft picks.
By trading Holiday and Porzingis, the Celtics saved enough cap space to get slightly under the second apron, which is why more moves could be on the way if they want no apron penalties.
When @hugoglezz_ got the call 📞 pic.twitter.com/23euYyMoaE
— Boston Celtics (@celtics) June 26, 2025
It also makes logical sense as spending big on a probable “lost year” without a healthy Tatum would not be smart. You can also justify it by saying that Holiday is 35 and on the downslope of his career, and Porzingis is often injured.
The Boston Celtics’ standings in the NBA championship odds for the 2025-26 season see them in ninth place, as the Celtics have +1800 on championship odds to win it all next June. If they were to move Brown, that number is only going to get worse.
But such is life in the NBA today. At least Boston accomplished the goal of winning a championship with this expensive roster, but those blown 20-point leads to the Knicks ruined any hope of a dynasty.
